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Monday, August 11, 2014

I Went and Now I'm Back. Two Wheels in the Wind for Four Days.

Made a Circle that was more like a big figure 8.

Just got back yesterday afternoon from a four day ride wandering 750 miles or so up along the divide. I'd lazed around and didn't hit the road till just after 9 in the morning. Wasn't figuring on goin' that far so why rush around?

So... within three miles I'm sitting in the sun waiting for five minutes for the train boys to move their toys out of the way and clear the road... then... as soon as I hit the canyon... six and half miles of fresh chip and seal... hmmmm... I was hopin' this weren't some sort of one of those premonition things.

Yeah, chip and seal might just be an inconvenience for a mother-in-law drivin' her Buick... buuuuut for a grumpy cuss on two wheels it can get down right ugly... so that was a pretty slow six miles... but then it was behind me and the open road lay out in front!

The first pass of the circle was at Cameron out at the west end of Poudre Canyon...

When you come off that you're in Jackson County and North Park...

*North Park Colorado just west of Walden*

This might be one of the coldest spots in the country. The Indians of the old days called it the "Buffalo Pen" because with the mountains surrounding it like they do, it was a giant pen.

Back in the 1880s in the west there were a couple of really bad winters. In two of those from 1884 to 1886 something like half of the cattle in this basin were wiped out by the winters... It's a hard life sometimes.

I was heading for a camp at Dumont Lake just over the left shoulder of that peak. That'd be rabbit ears. They used to call it bears ears ... which it looks a lot more like... I sure don't know who or why they changed it...

Buuuut... first I had to cross over Muddy Pass... and then Rabbit Ears pass right after that...

I got into camp with the lightning flashing and the thunder booming. Though I've not set this tent for a little while I had it up and camp set dry in under ten minutes. :)

and then with only a slight bit of rain the sun came back out...

It's kinda tough to travel through such a barren land ;) but I'll manage.

Just after I got my camp set I rode on into Steamboat Springs to get my supper. I'd planned on picking it up back in Walden. As it turned out, the lil' store I'd figured to pick it up at is closed up now. So it was 19 miles or so into Steamboat and the same 19 back.

Wouldn't have been an issue, it's a nice ride... if it hadn't been for that frog strangler that broke loose while I was in the grocery store!

I came out and had a choice... wait it out, which could be a while... or Billy Bad Azz it, suit up and ride!

Well... ya'll know me... I zipped up my rain gear, twisted the throttle and took me, my supper and a pint of nice ale home! Rain be damned!

Actually... outside of adding a little concentration dealing with the affects of rain on motorcycle traction... I don't mind rain riding at all... most times I even enjoy it.

Had to dawdle around the next morning...

*Dumont Lake Sunrise*

... To let my gear dry enough to pack up.

Then it was load up and ride out to see what the new day would bring...